HI,
Something I ran across on the Miata Board which I repost here merely as a Caveat to those considering these lights. It appears, direct from Sylvania, that you should plan on an annual expense of $40-$50 if you switch to these lights.
I am not advocating that you don't use them - you may find it a good Trade-Off, I'm simply passing along this consumer information.
Direct from the Lister:
Sylvania Silverstar
[1/23/2005] Reviewed by: Earl Muray - emurray@charter.net
Applicable to: '99 + 1.8 liter
Silverstare 9003 replacement headlight bulbs.
Great light output and color. Bought in Dec '03. Both suffered broken filaments in Oct '04. Same experience with Sylvania Cool Blue bulbs. $20 bulbs
Complained to Sylvania. Got the following Reply: Thank you for your inquiry, and please accept my apologies for any inconvenience the failure of these SilverStars may have caused you. Due to the performance of the SilverStar, it does have the shortest life of any of our product upgrades. The shorter life span is directly related to the performance nature of the lamps. The blue absorption coating on the glass contributes to the crisp white light emitted, but also traps heat inside the capsule, causing the filament to burn out more quickly, thus decreasing the life. As with most high performance products, there is a trade-off between the higher performance and the life hours, unfortunately. The SilverStar product works harder (not burns hotter, however) to give the whiter, brighter light and this impacts the life hours. The life expectancy of a SilverStar halogen light source is dependent on the driver's use of the lights, which vary by season, time of day and number of miles driven. We estimate the SilverStar halogen light! s to have a life span of up to one year under average driving conditions. The life of the SilverStar is further decreased if being used in a day-time running light application. Note: Expect one year of life. Headlight bulbs have become a consumable like air filters
Happy Motoring!... Jim'99